Week 3 Recap

Reynoldsburg 34, Westerville North 14

At a glance

•Star: Reynoldsburg running back Zach Mehan, who carried 23 times for 149 yards and a touchdown

•Key play: Mehan ran for a 67-yard touchdown late in the first half to put the Raiders ahead 31-7.

•Key stat: Reynoldsburg needed just 71 total yards of offense and three first downs to take a 17-0 lead in the first quarter.

The Reynoldsburg High School football team wasted little time in dispatching visiting Westerville North in a non-league game Sept. 13.

The Raiders scored on their first three possessions, led 17-0 with just over four minutes remaining in the first quarter and cruised to a 34-14 win over the Warriors, who broke a 45-game losing streak with a 48-21 victory over Franklin Heights in week one.

Reynoldsburg improved to 2-1, while North fell to 2-1.

The Raiders took advantage of a short field in the first quarter, as their scoring drives started at the North 35, 32 and 17. Senior quarterback Jordan Aekins ran for touchdowns of 1 and 13 yards, and Jordan Watkins added a 35-yard field goal.

“That was just what we wanted to do. Jump on them and try to take away their confidence,” Reynoldsburg coach Buddy White said. “We wanted to take control of the game early.”

Westerville North coach Rodger Elander agreed that the deficit was too much to overcome.

“Against a good football team that’s a big mountain to climb,” Elander said. “We’re improved, but there aren’t many teams that can afford to spot the other team 17 points and Reynoldsburg is a good football team.”

Reynoldsburg converted a third-and-10 early in the second quarter when Aekins lobbed a 30-yard touchdown pass to Demetris Givens in the right corner of the end zone to give the Raiders a 24-0 lead.

North got on the scoreboard when Andrew Malick scooped up a Reynoldsburg fumble and returned it 48 yards to make the score 24-7 with 2 minutes, 52 seconds remaining in the first half.

But on the first play from scrimmage after the ensuing kickoff, Reynoldsburg’s Zach Mehan raced through the right side of the line and outran the North defense for a 67-yard score. Mehan led the Raiders with 149 yards on 23 carries.

“We have all the confidence in the world in Zach Mehan and his speed, too,” White said. “The line popped a hole for him and he hit it just like that and got into their secondary.”

David Moore — who set a school record in Reynoldsburg’s 33-21 win at Hilliard Bradley Sept. 5 when he rushed for 323 yards — carried 15 times for 87 yards as the Raiders held a 352-237 advantage in total yards.

Watkins kicked a 26-yard field goal in the fourth quarter for Reynoldsburg, and North’s Jake Hinz scored on a 7-yard run with under a minute remaining for the only scores in the second half.

The Warriors were led by John Taylor, who ran for 46 yards on 11 carries.

North quarterback Jake Downs was sacked three times in the second half, and he finished 4-for-14 passing for 32 yards. He was picked off twice by Reynoldsburg defensive back Andrew Norman.